Number 4

Amador County Branch 96 - Jackson, California

THE OXEN’S TALE #4

BY FRANK TORTORICH

On September 9,1850, California became the thirty-first state of the Union.

However, DID YOU KNOW that California is the only state that went from a military possession to a state without going though territorial ship?

Along with the rush for gold, the residents of California seemed to be in a rush to become a state. The Union also seemed to be in a rush to have California become a state. Could gold have had anything to do with this rush?

There was a big debate in Congress over the boundaries for the new state. There were those who thought the eastern boundary should be at the Rocky Mountains. (The present day Salt Lake City sits at the foot of these are the mountains.)

The other concern was whether California was to be a supporter of the southern slaveholders or be a free state of the north. If the eastern boundary were the Rocky Mountains, California would have a landmass larger than all the northern states put together. The southern states did not think well of this location.

During this time, Brigham Young wanted the boundary for his state of Desert (Utah) to include the land south of the Tehachapi Mountains that would include the seaport town of San Diego.

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